Scouting the Story(hill)
Date 3/13/1997 12:00 AM | Topic: Arts & CultureJohnny Hermanson and Chris Cunningham form the duo "Storyhill." They will bring their art of musical storytelling to Luther Saturday, March 15 at 9 p.m. in the CFL main hall for their second performance in Decorah this academic year. The opening act will be Luther band "Rhythmic Ties." Tickets for general seating are available in the box office and are $7 or free with CAF.
On Friday, March 8, I went to a Storyhill concert at Bethel College in St. Paul, MN. Over the course of the evening I was taken on a journey. Mesmerized by the rainbow light that ricocheted off Hermanson's harmonica, I relaxed and listened to their stories.
Johnny had a good friend from Minnesota who went to Montana to go on a solo backpacking trip. His friend left two years ago, heading for the Silver Lake area in the Absaroka Beartooth Wilderness. He never returned, disappearing without a trace. Hermanson drove through Minnesota at sunset that same summer thinking about his friend's last drive through his home state.
"When the sun was settin' on your homeland..did you know you 'd see her no more?" Johnny sang, putting his pain into words. Experiences become stories and stories become songs.
Storyhill also candidly joked and talked with the audience throughout the evening. Between songs Chris said laughingly, "I feel like we should all be up here playing Twister or something." While the majority of the Bethel audience remained silent, visions of Luther students running wildly to find a Twister board came to my mind.
At that moment, Johnny's large pile of guitar picks fell from his microphone stand, scattering across the stage and interrupting my vision. "Hey! Take your pick! Pick it up!" Chris joked in amusement, seeming proud of his witty pun.
The night was filled with jokes and stories so real that the boundary between their experiences and ours slowly faded. Their stories became ours.
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Kari Kolling
Chips Staff Writer
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